Penny’s Place to Eat

Healthy, local and seasonal, this is fresh and wholesome cafe dining at its finest.

Photography: Parker Blain

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Photography: Parker Blain

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Photography: Parker Blain

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Published on 04 March 2015

by Ellen Fraser

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Penny and Martin Morgan are the brother-and-sister team behind Penny in Ultimo, and they’re a busy duo. Running Penny by day and bespoke events company PM behind the scenes, they have a lot on their respective plates. But the dynamic is perhaps not what you’d expect from siblings working and living together. Just metres from busy Harris Street, Penny is a haven of zen, stress-free casual dining.

“We’ve just always gotten along. Penny is the driving force behind it all. She tells me what to do and I do it,” laughs Martin. “This is our spot, so we want it to reflect our philosophy and attract people who are interested in our approach.”

Guests are greeted with a smile and often by name. The siblings maintain a relaxed energy front of house. Chef Jayde Charlton (The Counter, Rosetta Stone) executes the produce-driven menu.

“We change our menu each season because eating local and seasonal food supports local producers and the production of crops that are appropriate to our environment,” says Martin

Try the homemade maple and apple toasted muesli, served with dried fig and apricot, almonds, yoghurt and fresh seasonal fruit. Or pan-fried Swiss brown, button and field mushrooms atop a broad bean and pea smash with Bread & Butter sourdough toast, quinoa salad and a poached free-range egg. Then there’s the Avocado Bash; a well-balanced dish of avocado with feta, basil, parsley, mint and lemon on rye, finished with snow-pea tendrils and wild rocket. Add bacon and egg to take it to the next level.

For lunch, health nuts can pick up an autumn salad of raw beetroot, carrot, fennel, pear, rocket and zucchini with crunchy sunflower seeds and tahini dressing, or a vegan falafel sandwich with tabouleh, kumara and hummus.

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